


The Last Man On Earth

by mustangisinflames



Category: One Piece
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Zombie Apocalypse, Angst, Drama, Hurt/Comfort, Injury, M/M, Slow Burn, Slow Romance, some descriptions of injuries may be a little detailed but do not occur frequently
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-03-14
Updated: 2016-08-02
Packaged: 2018-05-26 19:01:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,925
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6251770
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mustangisinflames/pseuds/mustangisinflames
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When he discovered that he was most likely the last person left alive on a planet Earth infested with zombies, Zoro went through a lot to finally come to terms with what that meant- complete and utter loneliness. But everything is turned on its head when an injured man comes stumbling into his solitary lifestyle... perhaps he won't be so alone after all.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Zoro

Being the last person alive on Earth was exactly what it sounded like; awfully lonely. Doomed to a life of solitude of never seeing another human being again, Zoro reckoned that life couldn’t be any worse than this. Well, tell a lie, he could be a zombie and that would be a much more pitiful existence than this, made dead inside and out with only a ravenous hunger that could never be satiated to drive him on. It made him wonder what they ate nowadays, considering he was the only person out there and they certainly hadn’t eaten him yet. Perhaps they ate each other now or whatever unfortunate animal happened to cross their path. He looked at Chopper, a young Bernese mountain dog of formidable size, who lay on the frayed rug on the living room floor of the house that Zoro had barricaded and claimed for the next couple of days before they had to move on.

Zoro had come to terms with it eventually; being the last human being on the planet wasn’t a light weight to carry after all. He’d rejected the notion at first; it was impossible... how could he have been the only person to have survived the infection? But there it had been on the TV as plain as day- he could remember the news headlines until a few days later all signal connections had been lost, ‘LAST PERSON ON EARTH INFECTED’. Zoro had been wildly confused once the infection had ravaged its way through his body and out again, leaving him only with scars from the welted rashes and the haze of an uncontrollable fever and, oh yeah, the sudden realisation that he was quite possibly the last person left alive. Then after came the anger; why him? Why did he get to survive and no one else? Why couldn’t it have been a doctor or a scientist or someone who knew something about how to make a cure? Why the hell did the virus decide to spare Zoro, a college drop out with an attitude problem and no skills other than kendo? Why, why, why?!

But there was finally acceptance after a bitter eight months of self loathing and contempt and it came during a moment he was not the most proud of. It came to him as the cold touch of the barrel pressed against his temple as his gaze looked out of a window to the street beyond. He’d shut Chopper out of the bedroom he had chosen and, of course, the dog had scratched at the handle until he’d caught it and it gave way. Chopper had pushed his way into the room and did nothing more than calmly walk up to his owner and rub his head against Zoro’s leg. Zoro recalled looking down at him and the sadness, almost human-like in its expression, in Chopper’s eyes. He couldn’t do that to his dog. He may be the last human but he couldn’t leave Chopper alone. All they had was each other.

Maybe that was a feeble reason but to Zoro it was enough. A responsibility for his dog, his friend, was reason to keep on going. He’d put the gun down and spent the rest of the night curled up on the bed, clutching at Chopper who lay down next to him and crying until he could cry no more. As though he’d somehow heard Zoro’s thoughts, Chopper got up off the rug and hopped up onto the sofa next to his master, lying down and resting his large head in Zoro’s lap with a soft sigh. Zoro smiled slightly and pet him, fussing behind his ears until the large dog fell asleep once more.

Much like every evening spent as the last human on the earth, it was excessively quiet spare for the occasional squeak and groan of the old house he was holed up in. He’d boarded up the windows so that there was no natural light to be found and he missed looking at the moon and the stars but he knew from experience those zombie bastards were more active at night and he wasn’t willing to run that risk. For now, the soft glow of a couple of tea light candles would do.

Zoro yawned and relaxed, settling into the plush of the sofa cushions as he let his hand rest gently on Chopper’s head. Chopper was snoozing quietly now and the sound of his breathing was a comfort to Zoro; he didn’t feel quite as alone as before. His eyes were beginning to tire and it was getting ever more difficult to stay awake so he gave into it, closing his lids and allowing himself to think that all this... this mess... this nightmare of a reality wasn’t happening and that he and Chopper were warm and safe with a real home that didn’t need to be boarded up out of fear of being ambushed in their sleep.

He was just beginning to lull when he heard it and his eyes flew open and his hand reached for the gun on the small table next to the sofa on instinct. Chopper practically launched himself off the sofa and across the room, whining worriedly. The noise happened again, harsher this time and Zoro almost dropped the gun in disbelief as he processed what was happening. There he was, the last man alive in the entire world and... and... He couldn’t believe it.

Someone was knocking on the front door.


	2. No Mercy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Haha wow I actually updated this?!

It took what felt a lifetime to register it.

Because it should have been impossible.

No, it was impossible.

No one, no one should be knocking on that door.

And yet there was.

Zoro stood frozen in front of it, a large chest of drawers barricading his side. His mouth was dry and the gun felt heavier than it ever had in his hands. He could hear the blood pulsing in his ears, felt it jolting in his veins. He was afraid and he wouldn’t let pride deny it- fear was what kept you alive.

Thump. Thump. Thump.

His breath caught in his throat and his grip on the gun tightened. A million possibilities, terrible thoughts, ran through his mind. What if it was a zombie, clawing to get in? Or what if they had become more intelligent, learning to knock doors and aiming to prey on his loneliness by tricking him into opening the door?

Behind him Chopper growled lowly, the noise rumbling in his chest and his muzzle scrunching up in a snarl, his hackles raised. The candles in the room flickered slightly from some draught somewhere and it seemed as if everything was holding its breath.

“Let me in! Oh God, fucking let me in!” The voice was hoarse and dry, as though it had been screaming all day. Zoro’s heart leapt at the sound of it and a surge of emotion flooded through him as he realised... he hadn’t heard a human voice in years. Chopper started barking and lunged at the drawers blocking the door, scratching at the floorboards with his front claws. He looked at Zoro and whined before continuing with his endeavour.

It took a moment of hesitation before Zoro was spurred into action. He was breathing heavy as he pushed at the piece of furniture with all he had, resting the gun on top. Nervous excitement was thrumming through him, hazing his judgement. All he could focus on was the voice, the human voice, calling to him from the other side of the door. His actions had become frantic without him even noticing, so desperate was he to get to the voice calling out to him. The drawers scraped across the floorboards heavily and his arms were straining with the effort. With one final shove they were clear of the door and Zoro found himself staring up at the thin panel of wood that kept him apart from whatever lay beyond. He reached for the handle, the gun lying forgotten on the furniture he’d shoved aside.

The door burst open before he even had chance to open it himself and Zoro stumbled away, a bolt of terror suddenly tearing through him as he saw just what it was that stood the other side.

It was human, that much was certain, but it looked half dead.

Matted hair, smeared with blood and dirt was plastered to its’ scalp and its’ face was none the better. Rags of clothing hung to its’ thin frame and from its’ exposed chest Zoro could make out that it was a he.

The half dead man stumbled forward over the threshold and Zoro scrambled to grab his gun and cock it with fumbling fingers.

“Thank you...” The man rasped, “Thank you...” He made a rattling noise as he coughed and his knees went out from under him, collapsing to the floor. He didn’t get back up but he moaned painfully.

Zoro raised his gun and aimed it at the other man’s, the other things’, head. He didn’t know what was wrong with the man but he did know that abnormal meant bad. This man could have been bitten. He could be infected. He could be turning. And Zoro should be shooting him clean through the head but he wasn’t. He should be pulling that trigger, but he wasn’t. He should be killing this man. But he wasn’t.

He couldn’t.

Chopper curled around his legs and whined as the man (infected?) whatever he was laid pathetically on the floor. Chopper padded to the other’s side and sniffed him over, his tail slowly building to a wag. He barked and looked at Zoro expectantly.

Zoro lowered the gun and knelt down- Chopper wouldn’t be acting so friendly if this was a zombie. He remained hesitant though, afraid that Chopper may be wrong and the man would turn and savage his arm off. The large dog made a rumbling noise in his throat and nosed at the gun in Zoro’s hand until he placed it on the floor, reluctantly.

The stench coming from the man on the floor reminded him of the rotting bodies he’d passed from time to time on the streets in town and city centres and he gagged, covering his mouth and nose with one hand whilst the other grabbed the other man by the shoulder and turned him over. He almost retched at the sight.

The remains of the man’s shirt had shifted when he’d fallen to reveal a large gash, oozing with blood so thick it looked black. It smelled vile and Zoro’s stomach turned at the sight. He had a few medical supplies but nothing enough to deal with a grave wound like this. He reached for his gun again. Honestly, it would be a mercy...

Chopper growled throatily and snapped at his hand before moving to stand over the man’s body, acting as a shield.

“Chopper...” Zoro sighed. The dog snarled at him in response and stared at him with large brown eyes. Zoro’s face twisted, “Fine.”

He dragged the injured man into the house and slammed the door shut, shoving the chest of drawers back into place with a string of curses. He leaned back against it once he was done and ran his hands through his hair, watching as Chopper guarded the wounded mess of a man as though his life depended on it. He glanced over at the gun, still discarded on the floor.

He should have fired when he’d had the chance.

It would have been a mercy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! :D

**Author's Note:**

> So this is just a fic I'm going to be playing around with for a while. I'm not sure where it will lead to completely but I have a rough estimate. This was written for undanewneon and zombie-kaiisan on Tumblr. Please feel free to leave a review and tell me what you think. Many thanks x


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